Chapter 13.1

Tom continued his train of thought, “Val showed me all of the messages, and it appears there is someone of high rank in the program that is in on this and controlling our moves. We’re not sure how far up in the command chain this goes. I suppose the traitor could be a mission developer. But, it appears a big name has apparently recruited Jackie and arranged for her to be on this ship, to replace Commander Cody… ” Tom’s voice trailed off. Then he turned to face Jackie straight on, “Wait, you said you were contacted prior to the mission being announced? None of us had backups prior to the announcement, not until about three months into the preparations. I mean, it could be just a coincidence that you had the same chemistry and medical background as him, but…”

Tom’s mental deliberations abruptly headed in another direction: Ty and Claire’s accident may not have been an accident, after all, and what about Penny? Could someone have actually killed her trying to get him to abort the mission? Was there a previous plot meant to take her hostage that went awry? Could they have now taken Mike hostage after their failure to capture Penny?

“Penny,” A cold sweat broke out over Tom’s body as bile rose into his throat. His eyes stared around the room, seeing nothing, as his mind whirled in horror, and he exclaimed, “Do you think someone attempted to kill Ty to replace him with Jackie?” After a moment, Jackie’s face went ashen and then to green as she realized the implications of Tom’s statement. She suddenly lurched forward and sprinted toward the lavatory, not quite making it before vomiting noisily on the floor, spattering the toilet.

“I’d take that as a yes,” Carl stated, as Sally jumped up and moved quickly, following Jackie, to assist.

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